Palace of Westminster

We happened to be standing next to Westminster Palace (the Houses of Parliament) at 11:00, so we got to hear Big Ben chime 11 times (Big Ben is not the name of tower, as many people think, it’s just the nickname for the bell).  Today was a day full of walking–a guided tour along the Thames from the London Eye, around Westminster Palace, into Westminster Abbey, then to St. James Park for our sack lunch.

With Zain in Churchill's War Rooms

A surprise for the gang, fellow student Zain joined us at the park for the remainder of the afternoon.  We all went into the Churchill War Rooms, where we got to see the underground bunker and working area from World War II.  A great interactive table displays dates and events from throughout history, if you find the right dates, the table reacts (like bombs falling or poppies appearing).

The walking continued up to Trafalgar Square (dedicated in honour of Admiral Nelson), Leicester Square (where many major motion pictures have their London premieres), and into Piccadilly Circus (a smaller Times Square).  Some shopping was enjoyed before we reboarded the coaches to return to Charterhouse.

Tomorrow is an on-campus day and then it’s off to on Thursday to Leeds Castle and Canterbury.

A bit soaked after the downpour

While waiting in the queue for the London Eye, it started raining.  And by raining, I mean pouring.  We were approaching the sheltered area of the queue (line), and, of course, once we get to it, the rain stops and the sun comes out.  You couldn’t have planned the timing better. Such is the way of things.  And, as usual with middle schoolers, when I said in the morning, “bring your rain coats, it’s supposed to rain today,” my students must have thought that I was talking to someone else.

On the Prime Meridian

Despite the drenching, it was a great day.  Our morning started at the “beginning” of time — The Royal Observatory in Greenwich.  Standing at the Prime Meridian, you can stand with one foot in each of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.  Charles II appointed the first Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, in 1675 and the Observatory was built for him to study the heavens in order to improve ship navigation.   In addition to seeing the conditions in which Flamsteed lived, visitors are treated with displays on John Harrison‘s ground-breaking development of a portable timepiece that would allow precise timekeeping at sea.  Harrison’s H1 through H4 are quite impressive pieces of machinery.

After exploring Greenwich, we hopped on board a boat to travel up the River Thames through the City of London and to the City of Westminster–home of the Houses of Parliament and the London Eye.  The rain mostly held off during the river cruise, as we passed by Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, and several other landmarks.  Our destination was at the foot of the Parliament building, where we walked across Westminster Bridge and boarded the London Eye for a towering view over London.

On the Boat to Westminster

After two days of sightseeing, today is an on-campus day.  The students are playing and learning about English sport.  Tomorrow it is off to Portsmouth to see the HMS Victory and Arundel Castle.

There are a few other people writing about our adventures, as I become aware of them, I’ll point them out to you so you can check their sites as well as mine.  First, Matthew Edwards, our main tour guide, maintains the “official” ISCA blog.  He’ll post photos and a summary at the ISCA website.  Jay McEnaney, a teacher from the Summit School in North Carolina, is posting on his classroom webpage.  Also, keep an eye on my Flickr collection, where I’ll add photos, many more photos than I can post here.